The First Cut Is The Deepest
by CanzetYote
Summary: Oneshot. After being horribly bullied on his birthday by Bino, Tiger decides to experiment in self-mutilation.


**NOTE:** _Keep in mind that the following oneshot contains self-mutilation in the form of cutting. If this triggers you in any way, shape or form then reading this would be ill-advised. Also, it contains some mild bromance between Marvin and Tiger. If neither of these things bother you then by all means, read and review. Most of the time when I read the strip, I noticed Tiger gets mostly used as a crazy, lovable bipolar comic relief so I decided to do a bit of a serious oneshot about him to help flesh out his sadder side. Despite Tiger's comic relief status, I could really see him as a textbook jerkass woobie if he was really given a serious story arc._

Tiger blinked rapidly against the sting of salty tears building up behind his eyelids, pure fiery rage coursing through his body as he marched down the street in the direction of his house. His fur was matted with milk and the odor of dead fish lingered around him. Bino had humiliated him for the last time and the tormented dog's thoughts spun around his mind like a twisting tornado of pure hatred. Today was shaping up to be his worst birthday ever.

 _"Happy birthday, ya stupid smelly cat!"_ Bino's voice rang in Tiger's brain as fish guts covered him from head to toe.

He marched up the steps to his house and into the kitchen, wildly swinging open cabinets and drawers. The Arbelt family had run out of food once again thanks to his stomach. He needed a way to relieve his stress so he thought of the next "best" thing. Pulling a butcher's knife from out of the drawer, the canine stormed out of the kitchen and into the bathroom. Tiger paused to glare at his reflection for a few seconds before placing his paw over the sink and dragging the knife across his wrist. Blood immediately seeped from the open wound and poured into the sink. He squeezed his eyes shut, choking out angry sobs as he made a couple more slashes before slamming the knife into the sink. He then stomped over to the toilet, sat down on it and thought deeply about Bino's cruel bullying as the blood slowly ran down his arm. It wasn't long before the dam broke loose and the feline-named dog started crying Niagara Falls.

Tiger was now full-on weeping, scalding hot tears rolling down his muzzle and dripping off the tip of his nose like a leaky faucet, saline drops of heartache hitting the hard tile floor. It was then that he could feel a pair of arms wrapping around him and pulling him into a close hug. Apparently, he forgot to lock the bathroom door. He squirmed a little as he choked through his sobs, "J...just leave me alone...I...I'm not crying...s-so don't even THINK of hugging me!"

"Everyone needs to cry sometime, Tiger." Marvin replied, slowly stroking the tearful canine's back, "Now tell me what's bothing you."

"Fine." Tiger sniffed, angrily dragging his paw across his eyes, "Bino dumped a bucket of milk and dead fish on me, so the next time I see him, I'll slice his head clean off and use it like a soccer ball. That...that'll teach that dirty mongrel not to mess with me on my birthday!"

"Sounds like a rather um...violent solution." Marvin replied, trying not to chuckle at Tiger's threat.

"So?" Tiger sniffled, another tear dripping off his nose into Marvin's fur, "He deserves it for being a stupid punk."

Marvin felt the drop his his fur and he started rubbing Tiger's ears in an attempt to further calm him. The dog was like a brother to him so it tore him up inside to see Tiger crying like this. The cat took a deep breath and sighed, "Look Tiger, Zach and I decided to seek out the help of a support group for you."

"Support group?" Tiger growled, "So now you're saying I'm crazy?! I'm not the crazy one, Bino's the crazy one for using ME like a punching bag!"

"Its a group full of dogs with cat names and cats with dog names. It's led by a Siamese named Fetch and I'm sure he'll be very understanding of your problems. He's a real nice guy." Marvin explained, continuing to rub Tiger's ears. The cat's gaze fell down onto Tiger's bloody arm and he gasped, "Tiger, did you just..."

"Cut myself?" Tiger snarled, "So what if I did? We're all outta food and I've seen all the reruns on TV. I need SOME kinda outlet to express myself."

Marvin's own eyes slowly filled up with tears as he looked at Tiger with sadness and disappointment, "That's...not a very healthy way to express yourself. Y...you could die from that." The cat sighed and wiped the tears from his eyes, "Look, I'll get you some rubbing alcohol and gauze. Gotta stop the bleeding somehow."

"Pfft. Whatever. Just gimme the bandage so Bino has something brand new to laugh about." Tiger grumbled in irritation.

Marvin opened a cabinet under the sink and pulled out some rubbing alcohol, cotton swabs and gauze, "Okay Tiger, this may sting a little."

"Oh, joy." The dog replied sarcastically as the cat applied the medicine to the swab.

Tiger squeezed his eyes shut and bit his lip as Marvin applied the rubbing alcohol to the cuts on his arm. He let out a sharp, embarassingly puppylike whimper before opening up his eyes and staring at his feline friend with uncharacteristically sad, soulful eyes. Deep down, he felt like he didn't deserve a friend like Marvin and struggled to fight back the urge to cry again. After disinfecting the cut, Marvin slowly wound the gauze around Tiger's bloody arm, "There, that should help with the bleeding."

"I'm sorry for hurting myself and being a stupid jerk." Tiger said, feeling one final tear run down his snout and settle on his nose, "I guess the world just hates me so I kinda need to hate it back, you know?"

Frowning, Marvin leaned in close and ran his sandpapery cat tongue across the dog's nose, licking Tiger's tear away before pulling away to give the dog some personal space, "Don't sweat it too much, Tiger. Like I said, if you need help you can always contact the support group."

"Support groups are for losers." Tiger replied, crumpling Fetch's card up and tossing it into the sink basin, "They just lack the confidence that I have."

"So no more cutting?" Marvin asked, helping his canine friend to his feet.

"No more cutting." Tiger sighed, drying his misty eyes.

The duo exited the bathroom to see Zach waiting in the hallway. The rabbit blinked a few times and looked over to Tiger, "Tiger...um, are you okay? You look like you've been crying."

"Just so you know, I NEVER cry." Tiger growled at Zach who flinched a little at the dog's burst of anger.

"Okay. Okay. Okay." Zach shook his head rapidly, "I'm just here to use the bathroom, not start World War III."

"Don't you have something to say to me?" Tiger asked the rabbit.

Zach rubbed his chin for a bit and thought deeply, "Um...happy birthday?"

"Good." Tiger smiled at the bunny, "You remembered and unfortunately, so did Bino. I still gotta score to settle. See ya later, Zach."

Marvin turned to Zach, "He had a pretty rough day. It's best to leave him alone for a while. Okay?"

"I avoid him most of the time anyway, so that'll be pretty easy." Zach replied with a smile and nod.

The cat then turned his attention to Tiger, "Come on, let's go get a pizza together. Biggest size, your choice of toppings, birthday boy."

"Right after we decapitate Bino and use his head as a soccer ball." Tiger replied with a twisted smirk on his muzzle. Zach facepalmed and slowly shook his head at Tiger's violent remark. He just couldn't even tell if Tiger was being sarcastic or not.

Both Tiger and Marvin walked out of the room when Zach entered the bathroom. The rabbit's eyes peered down into the sink and he let out a gasp of horror, "WHY IS THERE A BLOODY KNIFE IN HERE?!"

The end.


End file.
